J.M.J.

Author's note: Thank you for reading! Special thanks to everyone who has left reviews! The next chapter will be August 17. God bless!

August 14 – Monday

Neither Frank nor Joe got much sleep that night. The most either of them did was to doze off now and then, which only added to the ethereal passage of time during that night, as they didn't know how long those periods of dozing lasted. They didn't know how long they were awake, either. There was no moon that night and no manmade light, and so the stars blazed with such intensity that little points of starlight even reflected off the water. It was as if they had wandered into another world where time didn't exist.

The one good thing about it was that the more dreamlike the night became, the more distant the snake incident seemed to become, as if it had happened a long time ago and had been a perfectly normal thing to happen. Both boys' hearts had ceased to race and the possibility of another snake being on the prowl seemed less likely. But not all the effects of the incident were gone. Frank's arm ached. Joe was stiff and sore all over. He was sure he must be a mass of bruises. His throat was sore from the saltwater, although the snake's pressure on his chest had actually prevented him from swallowing much of it.

There was nothing to do but lie there and watch the stars slowly wheel overhead. They moved with appalling slowness. In fact, neither boy would have thought they were moving at all if it hadn't been for the brief periods where they would doze off and then wake up to find the stars in a slightly different position.

"It must be getting close to dawn," Frank said, shattering the night's spell that had made it seem that morning would never come.

"How do you know that?"

"The stars," Frank replied. "Some have set since the night began and others have risen. If I knew enough astronomy to know the early morning constellations for this part of the world, I'd know for sure."

Joe chuckled slightly. "That's not what most people mean when they say they learned something from the stars."

Frank also chuckled, but then he said, "A night like this is almost enough to make you believe that the stars really are more than just….flaming balls of gas. Even if I'm not quite willing to believe that they control people's destiny."

"I know what you mean. You know what's really crazy, though? Those astronauts who are up there—In a way, they're not as far away from home as we are. In miles, obviously they're a lot farther, but they…"

"Have a way home," Frank finished for him.

"Yeah." Joe stared up at the bright points of light. "You remember that night back in Bayport, right before graduation, when we were stargazing?"

"The stars weren't as bright back home as they are here."

"No, but the stars themselves weren't really the point then. We had all those big plans and expectations…"

"You said you wanted to fight dragons," Frank reminded him. "Although I guess that snake is probably about as close as you could get to that."

"You were the one who fought it, though."

"Iola wasn't here for you to impress anyway."

"She wouldn't have been very impressed, would she?" Joe smiled ruefully. "Not that it matters as long as we're stuck here."

"I have to admit," Frank said a few seconds later, "I was hoping that we'd find some sign someone had been here. Even those murderers. Then there'd be some chance."

"I guess we do still think a lot alike," Joe replied. "But maybe it's just as well. I don't know that we'd be able to steal a boat from armed guys who are trying to kill us."

"They're not trying very hard. I still don't understand why they didn't try to contact us."

It was too much of a puzzle to figure out just then. If someone else had been on the island, then there was no reason why they wouldn't have made contact with the boys. If it had been the criminals who had attempted to kill them, then they would have had the opportunity to finish their job. If it was anyone honest, there was no reason why they wouldn't have tried to help the boys.

Joe gave up trying to work it out after a few minutes. "Uh, Frank?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't remember if I already said this in all the excitement, but thanks."

HBNDHBNDHB

Two large luggage cases and various full tubs and boxes decorated Callie's room. Classes didn't start for another week, but she was leaving early. She wanted to get settled in her new apartment before she had to start worrying about tests and papers and homework and assigned readings. Besides, that would give her a few days to start looking for a part-time job, preferably one that could turn into a full-time job in the summer. She didn't want to come back to Bayport after the school year, except a few times to visit her parents and Iola. It was too lonely there now. The idea of completely moving to another city where she didn't know anyone was terrifying, but she needed something different. She couldn't just stay in Bayport and wither away.

She took one last look around the room. It was funny that it already didn't feel like her room. Of course, no one would move into it after she left, but it would just be a spare bedroom now. It already had the impersonal feeling of a spare bedroom. Callie took a deep breath and walked out. She headed down to the dining room where supper was already on the table. She slid into her spot and it occurred to her that this wouldn't be her spot at the table by this time tomorrow.

"Are you all packed?" her father asked. Henry Shaw wasn't typically an emotional man, but Callie thought he looked like he was trying to hide the fact that part of him was sorry that his only child was about to move out permanently.

"Except for what I need for tonight still," Callie replied.

"Are you sure you don't us to come with you and help you move in?" Henry asked. "I can still call into work. Otherwise, you'll have to wait until Saturday before you have any furniture."

"I wouldn't want you to do that, Dad. I'll be fine on the air mattress."

Callie's car wouldn't fit any large furniture and she wouldn't be able to move it in by herself even if it did, so the plan was that her parents would drive up on the weekend and bring the pieces of furniture that she already had. They were insisting on helping her buy a mattress and bedframe, which Callie would pick out during the week. Her apartment came with a refrigerator and an oven, so there was no need to worry about those, and Callie would shop around for any other furniture needed in second-hand stores. She thought she could comfortably furnish the apartment without going too far overbudget.

"I wish you could have found a roommate," Leslie Shaw commented.

"I made a budget," Callie said. "With the financial aid I'm getting, I have enough in savings to pay for most of college and the apartment for all that time, and once I get a job, I'll be totally set."

"But if you need a loan, you know where to get one," Henry said. He grinned. "Within reason, of course."

"Thanks, Dad."

"I wasn't worried about the financial part of it so much," Leslie said.

Callie set her fork down and looked at her plate for a moment before composing her face and looking up again. "I won't be too lonely, Mom. I'd rather have my own space."

"But you said you were too lonely here," Leslie reminded her. "You don't know anyone there, and it's so soon."

Callie sighed, trying to think how she should answer that. She was lonely, unbearably lonely without Frank, and she couldn't talk to Iola anymore, either. She was so caught up in her theory that the boys were still alive. Callie was so tired of hearing it. Even when Iola was trying not to talk about it, it was obvious she was thinking about it. Callie was trying to be understanding for friendship's sake, but it was so draining that there was no solace for her loneliness in talking to Iola. No, nowhere else could be lonelier than Bayport right now, and anywhere else, Callie might have a chance of making new friends, at least.

"Leslie, she's made up her mind," Henry said when Callie didn't answer. "Just remember, Callie, you don't have to prove anything. If there's any part of this that doesn't work for you—the school, your major, whether or not you have a roommate—you can change those things, and it's okay."

Callie nodded. "I know, Dad. It's all going to be okay." Now, if she could only convince herself of that.

HBNDHBNDHB

Nancy scrolled through the application. It wasn't too intense, but she would have to look up some of the information, and that would be a hassle. She sighed and closed the laptop. It was too late to apply for the fall semester, anyway. Not that she was planning on taking any classes in the fall; she wanted to be able to visit Ned in New Zealand. But in the spring, maybe it was time to start college. Still…

She pushed the laptop back along the patio tabletop and looked out at the street for a few minutes, watching the traffic pass by. A familiar SUV came into sight and then parked in front of the Drew house. George got out and came up onto the porch, jumping up all three steps at once.

"Hey, Nan," she greeted her. "You look like you've got something on your mind. A new case?"

"Yeah," Nancy replied glumly. "The case of what to do with the rest of my life."

"Huh." George pulled out a chair and sat down. "That doesn't sound too tough to solve. Aren't you planning on being a detective?"

Nancy sat back in her chair rather than answering immediately. "Yes. I can't think of anything else that I'd be happier doing but somehow—Well, anyway, I've been thinking I should probably go to college after all."

"Okay, but why does it look like that's the worst thing that ever happened? I'll probably do college on campus next year. The online classes aren't bad, but I'd like to experience a college campus," George said.

"I don't know," Nancy said with a shrug. "I mean, it's not that I don't want to go to college. It's just a lot to think about."

"Okay, but what brought this on all the sudden?" George asked. "You weren't talking about college earlier this summer."

"A lot has changed since the start of summer." Nancy put her chin in her hands and leaned on the table. "I don't know how to explain it. I just feel kind of restless, like I'm wasting my life."

George chuckled. "If you're wasting your life, there's no hope for the rest of us."

"George, thanks for the compliments, but they're not helping me figure out what to do with my life."

"Okay. Well, why are you so unsure about college?"

Nancy thought about it a few seconds. "I think it's because, deep down, what I really want is impossible."

"I didn't know that word was even in your vocabulary," George replied before adding, "I know, I know. The compliments. What do you really want?"

"I want to keep doing what I'm doing," Nancy said. "Keep solving mysteries like I'm doing, with an amateur status, so I can keep helping people who really need it, not just people who can afford it. But I'd be out of money myself sooner than later. I know that."

"I don't know. Maybe you could make it into a non-profit or something."

Nancy grinned. "I've never heard of a non-profit like that before."

"It's an idea." George watched her face. "There's something more to what you really want, isn't there?"

Nancy glanced away. Her friends teased her sometimes about how perceptive she was, but Nancy knew she couldn't hide anything from them for long. "I think there are just too many things that I want. I want to keep solving mysteries and travel the world and at the same time, I want to get married and have a family and a comfortable, and the two of them just sound like they're worlds apart from each other."

"There's no reason why you can't do both," George said. "And go to college into the bargain."

"I know. At least, I think I know that." Nancy took a deep breath. "I'll snap out of this. It's just that after this summer, it's going to take some time. Thanks. I can use all the encouragement I can get."

HBNDHBNDHB

Katina seemed to be feeling better, although she had the vicious cough that was still plaguing Tony and Phil. She didn't want to get up or walk around, but she sat up and listened while they talked to her. She still flinched and appeared nervous if anyone got too close to her. Sometimes, though, she would let her guard down and relax. In fact, she would even giggle at the boys as they attempted to teach her English. They would point out various objects and repeat their names over and over until Katina would repeat the words. Something about that struck the girl as funny, and she did more laughing than anything.

It was about mid-afternoon when Frank and Joe came back into camp, walking slowly and wearily. Frank was holding his arm, which was no longer in a splint, and Joe would stop every so often to try to catch his breath. Chet was the first to see them and he called for the others before running to meet them.

"What happened to you guys?" he asked.

"We ran into Biff's snake," Joe replied. "That is, I did."

"Then what happened to Frank?" Chet asked.

"He had to fight it off," Joe explained laconically.

By this time, the other boys had gathered around, eager to hear the story. Katina didn't move from where she was sitting next to the cabin, but she watched with wide-open eyes. Frank and Joe had come right back that morning, and the long walk after a mostly sleepless night had taken its toll on them. Frank's arm hurt too much for him to talk, and Joe was too winded to give an account very quickly. Besides that, he was half-distracted as he and Phil examined Frank's arm to try to decide whether it was really broken again. Nevertheless, he managed to get the main points of the story across.

"I don't think it's broken again," Phil said, commenting on the arm rather than the story. "At least, if it is, it's not as bad as it was the first time. If we put it back in the splint and sling, it probably has as much chance of being okay as it ever did."

"That's good," Frank said. "You guys aren't ever going to let me take this sling off again, though, are you?"

"Nope," Joe replied. "But under the circumstances, I'll forgive you for taking it off this time."

"Oh, that's very generous of you, Joe," Frank said wryly.

Chet was glancing from one Hardy to the other. "Did that really happen? With the snake, I mean? I didn't think snakes really did things like that."

"Of course they do," Tony said. "That's why I keep as far away from snakes as I can." He shuddered. "Why did we have to get stranded on an island with giant snakes?"

"Hopefully only one giant snake," Frank told him. "And that one's not going to bother anyone anymore."

"How can there be only one snake on the island?" Phil objected. "It's not like they just pop into existence from nothing."

"No, but we looked at it this morning, once it was light," Frank said. "It was an anaconda, and they don't live in the Pacific Islands."

"Then how did it get here?" Biff asked.

"Probably the same way everyone else has," Frank said. "By boat. There's not a lot of prey for it on this island, but it probably caught fish in that lagoon, and snakes can go a long time without eating, so it would have done okay. But that kind of snake eats large land animals for prey, so it's not that unlikely that with hardly any other prey available, it would attack a human."

"Okay, but back up a second," Tony said. "Who in their right mind would be hauling a giant man-eating snake around on their boat and why would they let it loose on this island?"

"I don't know," Frank replied. "But there's a lot about this island I don't understand."

"The point is," Joe added, "it's crazy enough to bring one of those snakes here, so they probably wouldn't have brought two."

"I just hope they didn't bring both a male and a female," Tony grumbled. "Then there could be dozens of them all over."

"We've only seen two at the most, if it wasn't the same one," Joe pointed out. "I doubt there are dozens."

"I'd sleep better if we were sure there were none," Tony insisted.

Phil folded his arms. "I'd sleep better if I knew nobody was keeping secrets from the rest of us. What did you guys go to that part of the island to look for?"

Frank and Joe exchanged glances. They had expected that their friends would ask questions when they got back, but they had been hoping that they would have some answers by then. The incident with the snake had cut their investigation short.

"We didn't find out what we wanted to," Joe said after their silent consultation. "We thought that maybe someone else had come to the island since we've been here."

"You mean, besides Katina?" Chet asked.

"Who?" Joe asked.

Chet pointed out the girl, who sat up when she realized that she was being spoken about. "We found out her name," Chet explained.

"That's great. How did you do that?" Joe asked.

"It was my idea," Biff started to explain, but Phil interrupted to get the conversation back on track.

"Guys, if someone else has been on this island, it could be serious," he said. "Why do you think that?"

"The cold that you and Tony and Katina got," Frank explained. "We've all been on this island so long that we thought maybe someone must have brought it in."

"But just being on the same island as someone who's sick wouldn't be enough for us to get it," Tony pointed out.

"Unless it's spread on surfaces, and they were in the cabin at some point when we were all gone," Frank said.

"Say, that gives me an idea," Joe said. "Tony, do you have any pens, or just pencils?"

"There are a few pens, but they don't write very well anymore."

"You wouldn't mind sacrificing them then, would you?"

Tony raised an eyebrow. "No, but why?"

"I might have a way of seeing if anyone's been here."

Joe jumped up and hurried into the cabin. The others started to follow, but he warned them to stay out. They watched him in confusion as he began examining every smooth surface that he could find.

"I think this might work," he said finally. "Where are those pens, Tony?"

Tony retrieved the pens, and Joe finally explained what he was thinking. They had no means of dusting for fingerprints, but there were some surfaces where prints would be visible without dusting for them. Joe would use the little ink remaining in the pens to take everyone's fingerprints and then compare them to the ones he had found in the cabin. The others cooperated. Even Katina seemed fascinated by the fingerprinting process and shyly offered her fingers after seeing all the boys have their prints taken. Joe didn't think she had ever been in the cabin, but he took her prints anyway, just in case.

Joe then spent the rest of the afternoon painstakingly comparing fingerprints. Frank would have helped, but his arm was hurting too much to be able to concentrate on the monotonous task. The rest of them went about their day and most of them had decided that Joe probably wasn't going to find anything when he rushed out of the cabin.

"I found one," he announced, speaking grimly.

"A fingerprint that doesn't match?" Frank asked.

Joe nodded. "There has definitely been someone besides one of us seven in that cabin."